Head to head
Hootsuite vs Publora
Last updated 21 July 2026
Hootsuite does more than schedule: listening, a shared inbox, and deep reporting sit in one dashboard, and you pay for the breadth. It starts at $99 a user each month and there's no longer a free plan.
- From
- $99 per user / mo
- Free plan
Publora is a cheap, API-first scheduler that charges per connected account. It covers eight networks, including newer ones like Bluesky and Mastodon, has AI suggestions and agency workspaces, and is built with developers and automated pipelines in mind.
- From
- $2.99 per account / mo
- Free plan
Bottom line
Publora is the pick for developers building automated content pipelines, and it's the only one of the two with a free plan. Hootsuite fits small teams that need listening and reporting in one place better, and it reaches YouTube and Pinterest, which Publora doesn't.
Publora starts cheaper, $2.99 per account / mo against $99 per user / mo for Hootsuite. They bill on different units, so the real gap depends on how much you run. Hootsuite adds social listening and social inbox that Publora leaves out.
Key differences
Where the two actually diverge, before the full tables.
- Publora has a free plan; Hootsuite doesn't, though it offers a 14-day trial.
- Publora starts at $2.99 per account / mo, Hootsuite at $99 per user / mo.
- Hootsuite posts to 9 networks, Publora to 8.
- Only Hootsuite reaches Pinterest and YouTube.
- Only Publora reaches Mastodon.
- Hootsuite has social listening; Publora doesn't.
- Hootsuite has social inbox; Publora doesn't.
- Hootsuite has ad management; Publora doesn't.
Features compared
| Feature | Hootsuite | Publora |
|---|---|---|
| AI captions | Yes | Yes |
| Basic analytics | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced reports | Yes | Not assessed |
| Bulk upload | Yes | Not assessed |
| Evergreen recycling | No | No |
| Team roles | Yes | Not assessed |
| Approvals | Yes | Not assessed |
| Link in bio | Yes | Not assessed |
Platforms compared
| Network | Hootsuite | Publora |
|---|---|---|
| Auto | Auto | |
| Auto | Auto | |
| X (Twitter) | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | Auto | |
| TikTok | Auto | Auto |
| Auto | No | |
| YouTube | Auto | No |
| Threads | Auto | Auto |
| Bluesky | Auto | Auto |
| Mastodon | No | Auto |
Pricing
Headline prices are for a single unit. Here is the real monthly cost as each tool scales, costed on its own unit so the two stay honest.
Hootsuite
Standard
$99/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- 10
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $99 per user/mo billed annually
- Up to 10 social accounts
- Unlimited scheduling, AI assistant, one inbox
Professional
Popular$199/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $199 per user/mo billed annually
- Unlimited social accounts
- Automations for repetitive work
- No approval workflows (Hootsuite points approval-heavy teams at Advanced)
Advanced
$399/mo billed annually
- Seats
- 1
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Scheduled posts
- Unlimited
- $399 per user/mo billed annually
- Approval workflows, team assignments, custom reports
- Customer care routing
Enterprise
- Accounts
- Unlimited
- Custom pricing, 5+ users, unlimited accounts
- SSO, employee advocacy (Amplify), premium listening
- Salesforce, review management, compliance integrations
- Hootsuite restructured its lineup between June and July 2026: a Professional tier at $199 now sits between Standard ($99) and Advanced (previously $249 on annual, now $399), and the trial dropped from 30 days to 14.
- Priced per user/seat: the headline $99 / $199 / $399 is for one seat and multiplies by how many people you add.
- The advertised prices are the billed-annually rates. Monthly billing exists for all three self-serve plans at a higher per-seat rate, but Hootsuite no longer prints the monthly figures on the plans page; they appear at checkout. Before the restructure, Standard was $149 monthly vs $99 annual.
- No free plan. The 14-day trial needs no credit card. Nonprofit discounts exist on some plans.
- Prices are USD list from the plans page structured data (offers marked 'Billed annually'), read 2026-07-21.
Publora
Starter
- Accounts
- 1
- Scheduled posts
- 15
- Free forever
- 1 social account, 15 posts a month
- Calendar scheduler and editor
Pro
Popular- Scheduled posts
- 100
- $2.99 per account/mo
- 100 posts per account a month, schedule 2 months ahead
- Add as many accounts as you need (each billed separately)
Premium
- Scheduled posts
- 500
- $5.99 per account/mo
- 500 posts per account a month, schedule 2 months ahead
- Unlimited accounts, per-account billing
- Priced per connected social account: a free Starter plan covers one account and 15 posts a month, then Pro is $2.99 and Premium $5.99 per account a month, each adding more posts per account. You add as many accounts as you like, billed separately.
- There's a genuine free plan plus a trial of the paid features.
- Publora leans developer- and agency-friendly: a robust API, workspaces, and client management, and it covers newer networks like Bluesky and Mastodon well.
- Prices are USD, read off the live pricing page (monthly per-account rates).
What it really costs
Publora charges per account, so the headline price is for one. Here is the monthly cost as you connect more, with the 5-account row marked as a realistic setup.
| accounts | Pro | Premium |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2.99/mo | $5.99/mo |
| 3 | $8.97/mo | $17.97/mo |
| 5Typical | $14.950000000000001/mo | $29.950000000000003/mo |
| 10 | $29.900000000000002/mo | $59.900000000000006/mo |
| 25 | $74.75/mo | $149.75/mo |
| 50 | $149.5/mo | $299.5/mo |
Monthly billing.
Pros and cons
Hootsuite
- Broad by design: scheduling, listening, inbox, and reporting together
- Deep analytics and competitor benchmarking
- Publishes to nine networks, including Bluesky and Threads
- Strong approval workflows on Advanced and up
- Expensive, and per-seat pricing climbs quickly
- No free plan, and the entry price is $99 a month
- Monthly billing costs far more than annual
- The depth is overkill if you only schedule a few accounts
Publora
- Cheap per-account pricing with a free plan
- Robust API for automation
- Good coverage of newer networks (Bluesky, Mastodon)
- Smart pre-publish validations and AI suggestions
- No engagement inbox, recycling, or listening
- Eight networks; no YouTube, Pinterest, or Google Business
- Young, lightly documented company
- Per-account billing adds up with many profiles
Hootsuite vs Publora: FAQ
- Is Hootsuite or Publora cheaper?
- Publora is cheaper to start, from $2.99 against $99 for Hootsuite. The unit each one charges by differs, so the real bill depends on how many channels or seats you run.
- Does Hootsuite or Publora have a free plan?
- Publora has a free plan; Hootsuite does not, though it offers a 14-day trial.
- Which is better, Hootsuite or Publora?
- Hootsuite is the stronger pick for small teams that need listening and reporting in one place, while Publora is the better fit for developers building automated content pipelines. We don't score them; the right call comes down to how you post.